More 1st Round Games

Jazz continue to struggle on road, lose game 1

The Utah Jazz have struggled all year long on the road. Still many experts gave them a chance to take the Lakers deep into a series, those experts might be wrong.

The Lakers were able to dominate the Jazz this afternoon and win by a score of 113-100. The Lakers were led by MVP candidate Kobe Bryant who had 24 points.

"They kept knocking on the door and we just never let them in," Bryant said.

The Jazz will have to win at least one game in LA if they want a chance to win the series. The Jazz are 15-26 overall on the road this year. The Jazz are realistically the only team who matches up well with the Lakers. If they are not able to put a dent in the Lakers game plan everyone else in the West has a very slim chance of winning.

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Suns are done

Mavs crush Jazz, tied for 7th seed

The Dallas Mavericks played their biggest two games of year on Sunday and last night, both nights they were able to step up to the challenge.

The Mavericks crushed the seventh seed Utah Jazz last night in Dallas by a score of 130-101. The Mavs were able to kill two birds with one stone last night, they are now tied for the seventh seed in the Western Conference with Utah and they officially eliminated any chance for the Phoenix Suns to make the playoffs.

"Knowing the importance of each game and the sense of urgency, we treat every game like it's a Game 7 playoff game," said Mavericks guard Jason Terry, who scored 21 points last night.

The Mavericks have a chance to move up to the sixth seed in the West as they will play the sixth seed New Orleans Hornets on Friday and then again on Sunday. The Mavs are currently only one game back of the Hornets with four games left to play in the regular season.

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Cavs one win away from winning east

First place Lakers beat eighth place Mavericks 107-100

If the playoffs started today this would have been a first round match-up between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks, and this probably would have been the result.

Kobe Bryant and the Lakers beat Dirk Nowitizki and the Mavs 107-100 earlier this afternoon. The Mavs had the lead deep in the fourth quarter but the Lakers, lead by Kobe Bryant went on a 12-0 run to end the game giving them the win.

"It's why he's Kobe Bryant," said Jason Terry, who led the Mavs with 29 points. "He does things in the fourth quarter that only a few players can do."

The Mavericks have a four-and-a-half game lead over the Phoenix Suns for the final playoff spot in the western conference with 16 games to play. However, if the Mavericks stay in the eighth seed in the west and are forced to play the Lakers they may not want to be in the playoffs at all.

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Suns get much needed win in bay area

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Best in the West Battle

Best in the West, Lakers beat Spurs 102-95

In a match-up between the two best teams in the western conference the Los Angeles Lakers beat the San Antonio last night by a score of 102-95.

The Lakers started off hot and lead the Spurs by 18 points in the first quarter. The Spurs were able to come back however they were not able to mount enough of a comeback on the west best team.

"It's difficult to spot the best team in the league 18 points and then go play," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It was a really tough first quarter. They played great and didn't miss many shots. They made shots and we played badly."

This could be a preview of the western conference finals as the Lakers and the Spurs know what it takes to win down the stretch as both teams have won a combine seven championships since 1999.

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Phoenix loses six straight game, playoff hopes on the rocks

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Crazy Sunday in NBA

Shaq gets revenge on Kobe, Suns beat Lakers 118-111

Last Thursday Shaquille O'Neal returned to Los Angeles where he and the Phoenix Suns were defeated by Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, tonight the Diesel got his revenge.

The Suns beat the Lakers 118-111 in Phoenix this afternoon. O'Neal lead the Suns in scoring with 33 points and 7 rebounds. This was the second straight game that the Suns were able to get a win without two-time former MVP Steve Nash and All-Star Amare Stoudemire.

"It's what I do," O'Neal said. "I've been doing it since 1992. If you don't believe it, Google me."

Bryant was the leading scorer for the game with 49 points, he also was able to pull-down 11 rebounds.

"We're going through a period right now where everybody is just kind of tired a little bit," Bryant said.

This was an impressive win for the Suns. Currently Phoenix is in the 9th seed in the Western Conference, two games out of a playoff spot. This was a big win beating arguably the best team in the league. If the Suns are able to continue this great play behind O'Neal the Suns might be able to sneak into the playoffs and make some noise.

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Pistons upset defending champs without Iverson's help

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